Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities and Sexual Assault Victimization: The Role of Campus Climate Characteristics

• In Event: The Role of Social Institutions and Victimization

Abstract

College students with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) face an increased risk of interpersonal victimization. While this is a well-established finding in victimology, little is known about whether campus climate characteristics directly contribute to or mitigate this risk. One reason these characteristics may have such relationships is that campus climate factors may influence students’ vulnerability to victimization by shaping their social integration, access to support networks, and trust in institutional responses. This study investigates whether college students with IDD face a higher risk of sexual assault compared to their non-IDD peers and explores whether aspects of the campus climate environment—such as a sense of belonging, emphasis on mental health resources, and equitable treatment based on demographic characteristics—mediate this relationship. Publicly available data from the 2022-2024 waves of the Healthy Minds Study, an annual cross-sectional survey of institutions of higher education (N = 331 schools) in the United States (N =110,336 undergraduates), are used to test these relationships. Logistic regressions are estimated to assess the association between IDD status and sexual assault victimization, while mediation analyses explore the role of campus climate characteristics. The findings have implications for university-based prevention policies/programs and support systems for students with IDD.

Authors

• Rebekkah Gross, University of Cincinnati

• Ráchael Powers, University of Cincinnati

• Bonnie S. Fisher, University of Cincinnati